Five Things on a Friday – 12/5/25

 

Happy Friday! I hope your holiday season is going well so far, and you’ve had the perfect mix of a few festive occasions along with lots of time to rest in between all the various preparations that go along with this time of year. I still have quite a bit to do, but I would categorize it all as “fun to do” stuff, which just adds to the joy of the season. Trying to soak it all in rather than rushing to check everything off the list. 🙂 Grab a cozy beverage, and lets get caught up.

November this year was maybe the craziest month on record around here. Absolutely insane. November is always a bit busy with Christmas preparations, but I’ve definitely had my busiest Q4 ever this year with work-related commitments and social media brand partnerships. Those are always so fun, but they do take a lot of time and effort to put together. We’ve also had our busiest November with Art & Spaces, with so many shoots packed into the month at all kinds of beautiful homes around our area, not to mention a few little design projects on the side, just for fun. Of course, keeping up with Jack’s sports is always a full time job, and it feels like we’ve been bouncing from place to place for different games, practices, and training sessions almost non-stop. All that to say: If you’re barely holding things together this season, I’m right there with you. December looks a bit quieter for us, so I’m hoping to find myself with a clean house and maybe a free day or two by the time we get a little further into the month, because things are pretty wild right now. 🙂

I think I did about 752 trips out to the tree line to gather up fresh greenery for this year’s Christmas decor. I’m going to have quite a time when it comes to cleaning it all up, but it’s so beautiful everywhere right now. So it’s worth it. 🙂 What I like to do is use these inexpensive garlands (seriously, they’re so good), then I tuck fresh cedar in, so I end up with a mix of faux and fresh that just looks so full and lovely. I usually stick to mostly cedar in the house, but I like to use other types of greenery, twigs, and other natural elements from outside in my outdoor planters. We have white pine, juniper, and boxwood growing in different places around the property, and they make for a lovely mix. I usually use a few extra branches trimmed off our Christmas tree as well outside. The best part about using fresh greenery is that, even though it’s a bit of work to clean it up at the end of the season, you don’t have to find a place to store it! It can just be burned in a fire pit and then it’s done. I have enough Christmas bins at this point, so I’m happy to put in the work for fresh greens.

I don’t know what the new year will hold for me in terms of home projects, but I think I’m going to be starting off small with a project that I’ve been mulling over since the summer. We have a beautiful red brick wall in our bedroom that we exposed. It used to be the exterior of our house before the bedroom addition. We’ve exposed the brick in a few different places, but the problem with this brick is that it seems to be a lot redder than the brick in other parts of the house. I guess it was protected on this side of the house so it didn’t weather and fade as much as at the front of the house. It’s always bothered me how it gives a slight pink cast to the room when it reflects the light from the windows, so I think I might do something crazy and paint it white. Would that be terrible? I love the look of white painted brick, and we do already have exposed brick in the mudroom, as well as the doorway in the kitchen. Anyway, I might just bite the bullet and go for it once we get past the holidays. I hate to cover up that original character, but also, I think I’ll really love the way the white brick will look and also all the brightness it will bring to the room, especially with the new patterned curtains (CREEKLINEHOUSE for 25% off) I added in there.

Speaking of pattern, this is definitely the season of the stripe for me. I didn’t plan it that way, but I just keep adding stripes at every opportunity. I shared a few favourite striped finds recently, and I guess that really got me thinking. I’ve found myself adding stripes to every little corner with striped ribbons and bows to go along with all the Christmas greenery, and then I went for stripes in a big way with new striped curtains in the living room and dining room. It sounds like a lot of stripes, but oh gosh is it beautiful. I love it so much. The thing about striped curtains is that, since the curtains are already pleated, the striped effect is really quite subtle. You get the sense of a pattern without it feeling too bold or busy. If you’d like to move towards adding a little pattern to your space, but would prefer to play it a little safe so you know you’ll love it for years and years, think about trying a lovely stripe for your curtains and drapes. These ones pictured here are from Curtarra, and you can use my code CH12 for 20% off your entire order.

This will be my last “Five Things on a Friday” post for this year, so I just wanted to take a moment to say thanks. Thank you so much for being here. Whether you’ve joined my email list and read every post daily, pop over here occasionally from Instagram, or just click over to the site every now and then to see what’s new, I appreciate you taking the time of your busy day to slow down with me for a moment and connect over our shared love of all things home. This blog is safe space of creativity and inspiration for me, and I hope it’s a bright spot in your day as well. In a world of brain rot content, and AI everything, it means so much to me just to know that there are so many of us who are still looking to connect with real people and enjoy ideas thought up, created, and discussed by real humans. So thank you so much for being here. Your support means the world to me.

NEWS AND FINDS

-I wanted to introduce you to a new Canadian candle company that I’ve been loving. Dia combines South Asian inspired fragrances with a design-forward touch and they’d make a great gift this holiday season if you’re looking to shop Canadian. These candles are non-toxic, clean burning, and poured right here in Ontario. I have the Mogra scent, which is a blend of jasmin, honeysuckle, and tuberose. This scent is so fresh and exactly how I want my house to smell going into the new year! Use my code Courtenay_10 for 10% off your order!

-I’m so excited to try out the Scout luggage tracker and alarm from Knog! They sent along one for each member of our family, and I just think they’re so smart. This little tag features a highly accurate luggage tracker with an 85db alarm to find your lost luggage among the masses, and it works with Apple Find My. This tiny device provides unparalleled luggage security, but I also love the idea of using in so many other ways. I’m thinking it will be great for soccer bags, kids’ bikes, handbags, keys, or even jackets. All the things that members of your family might regularly misplace or leave behind. Such a handy little thing and a great gift idea for travellers, or for anyone who always seems to be losing things.

-I may have found the best solution for that post-Christmas bare house problem we all deal with when we put our Christmas decorations away. This 7-foot faux olive tree is so beautiful and realistic with its graceful, twisting trunk shape and instantly bring life to any room or bare corner. I love sleeping under this oversized tree in our little bedroom, but it’s actually big enough to fill a large open space if you have an open concept home with high ceilings. The best part is that it’s so much more affordable than others I’ve seen, but it’s also one of the prettiest. They have a few different shapes and sizes of tree that you can see here, so you can find the perfect one for your space.

-I recently came across this ottoman and I can’t stop thinking about it. The brown gingham fabric caught my eye first, but then I noticed there are so many other beautiful fabric options, too. I love that retailers are starting to make pieces with a bit more character to meet the demand for more personal, cozy spaces. It’s so great to be able to order pieces like this that feel custom without the custom price tag. Love this large ottoman too for a cozy traditional space.

–This pleated lampshade has been a follower favourite too! I first shared it a few weeks ago, and it seems that everyone has loved it as much as I do. I love the idea of keeping your existing lamps and just updating the shades for a more sustainable home upgrade.

-Do you remember my new beach cruiser bike from this summer? My friends at Huffy have come out with a new kids bike, and I think it’s an amazing option if you’re looking to put a new bike under the tree for your kids or grandkids this year. Their new system is called the “GRM” for Grow, Ride, Move and it’s designed to make riding confidently easier and safer for riders with a perfect-fit frame that have a lower centre of gravity for stability. If you register your GRM bike with Huffy.com, you get a discount on the next size up when your child outgrows their bike. Now available on Amazon!

-A few recent best sellers:

• The super affordable garlands I use year after years around our home for Christmas
• This Spode Christmas Tree 12-piece dinnerware set. Such a classic pattern and a dream gift.
• Our dining room chandelier. We have the 36″ size and it’s perfect in every way.
• These Amazon dried orange slices for decor, tea, or fancy cocktail garnishes.
• My gold arch mirror from the mudroom. A forever piece for sure and finally back in stock.
• These water hyacinth Christmas trees. A great foundational Christmas set to use every year.

-As always, I try to add links to everything I share here on the blog and on Instagram on my shop page. It’s searchable, so you should be able to locate anything you’re looking for easily.

RECENT POSTS YOU MAY HAVE MISSED

• How to Hang Garlands Over a Mirror
• Best Gift for Bakers: “Buy Once, Cry Once Pieces to Last a Lifetime”
• Christmas in My Blue Kitchen
• Foundational Christmas Decor Pieces to Make Your Space Feel Complete
• Ralph Lauren Christmas is the Trend That No One is Pulling Off